Captive
by Levi's Nice Ass
Summary: Eren was the son of a wealthy scientist, living a sheltered life inside wall Sheena. He'd heard stories of the thugs living below the city...but he never knew they were quite so...sexy...until he was kidnapped by one for ransom. Eren x Levi (Ereri/ Riren) multichap fic Rating WILL go up with further chapters.
1. Chapter 1

AN: The number of Eren/Levi hipster-college-kid AUs is TOO DAYUM HIGH! So, here's a fic that's based on the actual SnK universe...but of course, with a skew. (j/k, I love college AUs) I just wanted to write something where Eren gets the shit beat out of him by Levi...because come on, we all know that's sexy as fuck, right? Ignore me, it seems I'm making an ass of myself in an author note again...

Summary: Eren was the son of a wealthy scientist, living a sheltered life inside wall Sheena. He'd heard stories of the thugs living below the city...but he never knew they were quite so...sexy...until he was kidnapped by one for ransom. Eren x Levi (Ereri/ Riren) multichap fic

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Eren stared forlornly out the window of the second story of his parents house. He was supposed to be studying, having acquired access to a prestigious education- the only such education known to humanity, and only available to the richest children in the inner city. It was paid for, of course, by his parents money, his father being a well known doctor and scientist, and his mother had inherited quite a sum of money from her parents before she had died giving birth, passing the money on to Eren. But unfortunately for his teachers, Eren was not an academic child. He loved the grass and the sun on his face, the feel of the real world in his grasp, rather than hidden behind convoluted explanations in books. He wanted to live in the world to learn of it, not sit here in a comfy chair and lazy around like the overly privileged brat that he was. He could never understand how Armin could be so enthralled by things like _theories _and _history_...but he did find himself very interested in that one book about the world beyond the walls. He dreamed vivid dreams of exploring it with his friend. Perhaps someday they could, once those weirdos in the Scout Regiment had killed all the titans. The titans...he couldn't imagine them really, but he'd heard that they were huge, tall enough to look over the walls and pluck people from the streets and into their big, greedy mouths just like the king with his chocolates. He'd never seen a titan, but he couldn't fathom why anyone would want to put their lives in danger like that; the teachers always told him the walls were unbreakable. Personally, he hoped to join the military police, if only to get his father off his back. There was nothing worse than that look of disappointment every time Eren came home with a poor score on a test, nothing worse than the rage he'd endure if that low score was in science, or biology.

_Eren, _his father would say, _I've taught you everything I know. If you can't manage to get a good mark on your test, why are we wasting our money on you? I could be funding experiments with this money, Eren. I could be making discoveries that your children might learn someday in school, unless they end up with brains like yours. Your sister gets good marks in every subject. Why can't you? _

Eren stared out the window blankly, his hands curled into fists. He hated this library. He hated his house, and its plush pillows and polished floors. He turned fifteen today, why didn't he feel like a man? He felt like a dog. A kicked dog.

_Not that he really knew what it was really like, to be kicked..._

He set down the book he was supposed to be reading, and silently upon the carpeted floors, stood. He knew his father would be listening, waiting to see if he stayed in the library to study or if he'd go in his room to sleep or do exercise practice, as he's much rather be doing. Instead of doing either, he simply slid up the window, perched carefully on the ledge, and then nimbly leapt to the cobblestone below.

Immediately, he felt better. The wind blew his hair back, and the sun reflected the blue of his eyes. In the light of the sun, his tan skin seemed to glow. His lightweight white tunic ruffled in the breeze, and suddenly he found himself running, down the streets, past the merchants and shops, past men playing music. The smell of bread wafted to him from a bakery. A group of military policemen sauntered along, and one recognized him, possibly an acquaintance of his father's, but before the man could speak more than a startled, "Eren Yeager...?! What are you-?" he had already darted past and around the corner. All the houses looked the same in the city. All the streets. He wondered if he could find Armin's. Perhaps, he thought as he ran, they could go together for sweetbread, or perhaps, he thought rather grudgingly, Armin could shed some light on their current schoolwork for him. He slowed to a walk, analyzing each house carefully, trying to remember his friend's. It had a...blue door, and...some red flowers out front...

He wandered aimlessly for a long time, only half searching and half just enjoying the walk, until he realized the sun was beginning to set and he wasn't really sure how long he'd been gone. Hours? But how many? Was it dinner time? Were the servants looking for him? Worse- was Mikasa?

Well, even if she was, she wouldn't find him. He was hopelessly lost. There was no way he'd find his way back before sundown, and there were sure to be harsh punishments in store for him once he had. He sighed, and plopped down on the curb, his feet beginning to tire. He picked at the gravel by his feet, picking up rocks and dropping them into a sewer grate cut into the sidewalk, not really thinking about where the rocks might fall to. His walk had been so nice, but now he was feeling rather dejected. He didn't want to go back. His father would yell, and Mikasa would just stare, with those empty eyes, and when he tried to explain that he _just didn't understand the schoolwork, _Mikasa would plead with him and say _Just let me help you, Eren, please... _

His hands clenched to fists again and he grit his teeth, eyes flaring. "I don't need anybody's help." He muttered to himself, angry. At himself. At his family. He wasn't sure which.

"Are you sure about that?" A smooth voice said. A voice, from behind him...Eren turned sharply, to find something sharp pressed hard against his throat. A look of horror crossed his face as he realized that it was a knife, held firm to his jugular. His wide eyes met the slate grey eyes of his assailant, eyes cold as ice and piercing as tacks.

He felt a sharp pain to his head, and then all went black.

…...

_Cold..._

Eren thought. His feet were cold, his fingers as well. He felt stiff, as though he'd fallen from a great height...he tried to remember where he was, but he found that he couldn't. His eyes opened wide, straining to see, but all was pitch black. His breath felt hot and sticky on his face, and he realized that something was over his head masking his sight and tied around his neck; the rope holding it tight was heavy and foreboding. He attempted to move his arm, to unveil his eyes, but found that he couldn't move his hands...they were restrained, ropes tied so tight around his wrists that he began to wonder if it was cold that he felt or if he could even feel his fingers. Slowly, he shifted his weight, scrunching until he righted himself into an upright position, legs awkwardly to the side, his ankles tied tight as well. His head throbbed, and as his blood rushed he saw stars in the darkness.

"H-hello?" He said feebly, feeling a bit of an idiot after the fact. What did he expect, his kidnapper to be friendly and say hello back?

"Hello, Eren Yeager." The same smooth voice responded, proving him wrong. But the tone was flat, and...Eren gulped...it seemed that his captor's face was mere inches from his.

"How do you know who I am?"

"I was watching you. The rich little shit running away from home for the umpteenth time- oh, but not really of course." The flat voice dripped with sarcasm. "You hate your spoiled life, yet you know nothing else."

"It's not like that!" Eren snapped, his temper getting the better of him as per usual. "You know nothing about me."

Something collided sharply with Eren's jaw and sent him crashing to the floor. His wrists wrenched painfully, unable to break his fall. He coughed, his breathing ragged. He'd never been hit like this before...only in scolding...his heart raced, wondering what this cold eyed stranger could possibly want from him.

"I know your father is a wealthy man, Eren. I now he will pay anything to get his oldest son back. And that is all that matters."

"I doubt that..." Eren muttered. "He probably thinks I just ran away again..."

"Well then, we'll just have to make sure he knows the truth, won't we?" The man paused, seeming to think. There was an abrupt tug from around Eren's neck and he realized that the man had torn off his necklace, an old skeleton key.

"Give that back! That belonged to my mother!"

"Tough shit."

"Give it back! Motherfucker!" Eren screamed in helpless rage, struggling to right himself. He felt a foot connect with the side of his head, pressing his face into the dirt, the coarse fabric of his veil abrading his cheek.

"If _you _want to get out of this alive, you'll keep your trap _shut..._understood?"

Eren yelled muffled obscenities, more enraged than he'd ever been. He'd get free, and he'd kill this man, who dared to kidnap him. HIM. He hoped against hope that his father's contacts would prove useful, that they'd find him...

"Isabel, send this necklace to his father. Make sure he knows exactly who he's dealing with."

"Right away, Levi~" A girls voice replied, and Eren realized that there must be others nearby. He was outnumbered. Where was he? He had a gnawing suspicion he knew exactly where...but things like that didn't happen in real life, did they? People didn't really live in the underground beneath the city, those were just urban legends...things Armin had made up, because Armin is a scaredy cat and believes all sorts of things, like stories of sand oceans and ice lands...

What kind of people _would _live in the underground? No stores or bakeries to buy food or clothes, no sewers to keep them clean or horses to ride...no sunlight to bask in in the afternoons...His heart pounded harder as he saw those slate eyes again in his mind, remembered the prick of a blade against his flesh. Who knew what these people would do to him. Who knew how many they were or...he swallowed hard...how hungry these men might be.

"You..." Eren began slowly, choosing his words more carefully, less impulsively, "Your name is Levi."

"...Tch."

"Is this...the underground, Levi?"

"Yes. Where else did you expect? The palace?"

"I thought..." Eren paused, thinking again. "Nevermind that. If this is the underground, then...well that is, if I were you, and I knew who I was dealing with..."

Levi sighed in exasperation. Who he was dealing with? He was dealing with a brat. A brat who'd be taught a lesson.

"...I wouldn't give the military police time to act. I'd demand the ransom quickly, take advantage of the political disorder above, and then kill any possible witnesses who might be able to find you." Eren finished slowly. "...And that would be me."

He felt the tip of a blade against his throat again and intook a sharp breath waiting for the pain, but instead he found his veil, a thick burlap cloth cut away, and himself staring directly into those iron hard eyes, glimmering like gunmetal in the light of a few flickering fires nearby. Black hair framed a pale face, but a grey cloth was tied across the man's face so he could only see those eyes...those eyes that pierced his heart and gave him more fear even than the sight of the blade in the man's hands, clean, polished and...lethal. As he took in the man's slim fitting pants and button up shirt, he realized those words could probably describe more than just the blade. He never expected a thug from the underground to look so...clean.

"And so, Eren Yeager," Levi replied, his gaze unyielding, "What does it mean if I let you see my face? My body? The place where I've decided to keep you?"

"It means..." Eren closed his eyes in dread, "That you're going to kill me, and there's nothing I can do about it."

"Precisely."

His eyes gleamed with cold fury, and suddenly a boot connected hard with Eren's belly.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I know this fic got off to a rather quick start...hopefully it doesn't feel rushed...I just love the idea of Eren meeting Levi before he joined the Survey Corp... I've never written an Ereri before, so I'm still getting into the characters. I apologize for any OOCness. Also this chapter gets pretty violent...the fic will get less so in the future but if I need to change the rating or summary please let me know.

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Eren gagged, feeling bile rise in his throat. So that was it then. He ran away from home on a whim, and now he was going to die in the underground and no one even knew he was gone yet. Another kick fell, landing between his ribs, knocking the wind from his lungs and he gasped desperately, his eyes welling with reluctant tears. It hurt. It hurt so much, and he hadn't even done anything to deserve it, other than having rich parents. It wasn't fair. Another kick to the chest, and he felt his heart skip. His vision swam dizzily, his head still throbbing from earlier. He couldn't breathe.

"Please..." He gasped out, "Stop."

Levi straightened, drawing himself up to his highest stature, which Eren noticed dryly, was rather short and scrawny. He could totally take him if he wasn't tied up. And if he wasn't desperately gulping for air.

Levi's cold eyes seemed to stare into him. He knew what he was doing; he was causing pain to an innocent boy for seemingly no reason other than personal gain. Eren felt grossly helpless, like a kitten as he coughed, drooling into the dirt as a final kick landed against his jaw. Again. He was going to have awful bruises.

"Bastard..." Eren choked.

"Brat." Levi replied. Eren's firey teal eyes met Levi's in a heated glare, and for a long moment they faced off, Eren's body heaving for breath, his clothes torn and covered in dirt, Levi calm, collected and utterly flawless. "I have to keep you alive long enough to get the money, unfortunately." He continued. "So if you'll agree that pissing me off is a shit idea, I'll untie your feet and let you have some bread."

"...Gch." Eren grunted into the dirt, obviously less than thrilled to be so utterly at the other man's mercy. He wanted to shove that bread right up this Levi's pretty ass. But as his feet tingled from lack of blood, he sighed a resigned sigh. "...Fine."

"Good boy." Levi replied, and swiftly drove his blade down between Eren's ankles, narrowly missing the skin but slicing cleanly through the rope. Eren flinched, and then glared up at the other man as he stumbled to his feet. Upright, he got a better look around.

They were in a room, lit by several barrel fires, over which one of there appeared to be some sort of small animal cooking. A girl sat by one of the fires, scribbling what was probably Eren's ransom note. In the corner, a man lay sleeping quietly. There were windows, but outside he only saw dimly lit buildings and instead of sky, there were stalactites. He shuddered. The air reeked of filth. Those eyes must be the eyes of one who's seen the darkest underbelly of the world...and conquered it.

"Wow, he can stand!" The girl looked up and laughed, her spiky pigtails casting strange shadows on the wall. "You're tough for a pampered little pet."

"I'm nobody's pet!" Eren gritted, though his rage lost some of its effect as he coughed again, tasting blood on the back of his tongue. She giggled.

"Says the boy on the leash..."

Eren looked down and found that indeed, the rope still tying his hands together had a long lead, which was held firmly in Levi's hand. Eren also noticed that he was not just a little, but a _lot _taller than the man. He stifled a smirk. He might be on a leash, but at leash he wasn't short.

Levi led him to a spot by the wall and said, "You will stand here and you will not move. If you move, I will kill you. Understood? You will say, 'Yes, Levi.'"

Eren leaned back casually against the wall, trying to ignore how much his ribs throbbed as he did so. Goddamn, that hurt. He rolled his eyes, but when he spoke he had to grit his teeth not to whimper. He may have cracked a rib.

"Yes, Levi."

Levi turned and dug a rather hard chuck of bread from a bag, as well as a canteen of water. Eren could have sworn he heard the girl, Isabel, whisper to herself something like _he's so sexy when he's threatening..._

He stifled back nausea.

Levi turned back to Eren, bread and water in hand. "Open," he said simply, and Eren did. The bread was shoved roughly between his lips, stuffed into his cheeks. It was dry and tasted less than edible. "Whatever you can bite off is what you get. We have to eat too." Eren chewed slowly, his cheeks bulging. One bite of bread? That was hardly a meal. Still, the other two split the small chunk between them and each of them ate about the same amount. Was that normal? Once the other two had taken drinks, Levi held the canteen above Eren's face, and Eren opened his mouth, catching as much water as he could without letting it run down his chin. It was humiliating. He felt like a baby bird.

"What about the other guy?" He asked Levi, nodding to the sleeping man one he finished drinking, "Doesn't he get any food?"

With no warning or even look, Levi smacked him hard across the cheek, flaring the already tender flesh pink. "Mind your own buisness." His voice was somehow...harsher than before. Tinged with something else.

The girl bit her lip and looked back down to her writing, but her pen did not move . She stared down for a long moment. Levi ran his fingers through his black bangs and knelt to the ground, picking up each and every fallen bread crumb and tossing them into the fire. For just a second, Eren caught a peek behind the man's mask and saw that his mouth was a hard line.

Levi turned back to Eren finally, and when their eyes met, those grey eyes seemed deader than before.

"Come. We need to get you cleaned up. I refuse to have your clothes leave dirt on my boots every time I kick you."

…...

Levi led Eren my the rope down a short hallway to a smaller room. It had a small sleeping pallet in the corner which was impeccably made, and another across from it that was only minutely less tidy. There was a small shelf with stacks of folded clothes on it, and from difference of style Eren suspected that one shelf contained Levi's clothes, and the others belonged to the other man. Levi took a shirt and a pair of pants from the shelf that was not his, and handed them to Eren, who grasped them with both hands.

"Mine won't fit you, and even if they did I'd never let filth like you wear them. I'll untie your hands, but only for this."

"You want me to strip?" Eren asked incredulously, "You're kidding."

"No. I am not, so please shut the fuck up and get to it." Levi deftly unwound the thick knot and held the rope tightly in one hand, it's length coiling on the floor like a whip.

"Fine. But only if you take off your mask."

"You do realize that your seeing my whole face only ensures your demise more surely?"

Eren sighed. What did he have to lose? "You're going to kill me anyway, remember?"

"Very well," Levi 'tch'-ed again, and slid the cloth down until it no longer covered his mouth and nose but instead rested at the base of his slender neck. His face was small, thin...and utterly devoid of emotion. But somehow, Eren noticed, he was handsome...delicately so. He felt as if he were already naked under the man's piercing stare.

"Now take off your clothes."

Eren found himself blushing in spite of himself, hoping the pink would be covered by the bruises Levi had left on his face. He'd never undressed in front of anyone before. And there was something awfully thrilling about being at someone else's whim, completely and totally dominated...He wondered what Levi would do if he refused. Would he force him? Would he force his clothes off him?

Eren shook his head. What was he _thinking_? This man was a violent kidnapper, and he was in severe pain, and he was _blushing_? He cursed himself for having the sex drive of a teenage boy. Why couldn't he be more like Armin, and keep that kind of emotions in check...?

Levi coolly stepped forewards and wound his fingers in Eren's hair. He had to look up to look Eren in the eyes, but their noses almost touched as Levi wrenched his head back roughly, his other hand reaching up to punch Eren hard.

"Take them off. Now."

Eren coughed again, sniffling as he swallowed more blood. He did as he was told this time, slowly slipping his tunic up over his head, gritting his teeth against the pain of moving. As the fabric moved to expose his abdomen and chest, Eren saw Levi's lips part ever so slightly, and those cool eyes searched him, taking in every purple bloom and red swollen splot. Sure enough, next to one of his lower right ribs the bruising was darkest. Eren hissed as the movement of his muscles pressed uncomfortably against the cracked bone. Levi's eyes seemed to glow. God, how could such blank eyes be so expressive? Eren shivered as the gaze raked his skin like claws.

"You bruise easily," Levi remarked, still eying him darkly. "I like that."

"Well I don't."

"What you like doesn't matter." The response was offputting, cold. Eren supposed he wouldn't like dying much either. Levi helped Eren into his shirt, buttoning it only part way, leaving exposed part of the boy's chest. The sleeves were slightly too long on him, but he didn't mind, as the fabric slightly cushioned the bite of the rope as Levi worked his master knotwork around his wrists once again.

Still, the older man's eyes lingered. Upon the slit of tan skin exposed by the shirt, the smooth chest flowering with bruises...

…...

For a long time they sat in silence. Isabel had gone to bed, but Eren didn't think he could sleep if he tried. Noting Levi's dark circles, he wondered if the other man ever slept.

Eren curled his legs close to his chest as he made himself more comfortable on his spot on the floor. It was made of polished wood, not as nice as what he had at home, but nicer than what he would have expected.

"You like things clean, don't you? He began tentatively. There was no point just sitting around if nobody was going to talk. He had the feeling something he said would get him abused more, but Eren was the talkative, energetic type, and if he couldn't move, he _had _to talk.

"Yes."

Eren found the darkness outside the open windows unnerving. It was night, but there were no stars. There was no wind, the air was moist and stagnant and smelled like dirt. In the distance he heard men shouting, and what may have been a cat or a child crying. Unease still setted in his belly but he forced it down. "Okay...um...is it hard for you living in the underground? Do you starve?"

"No. We have each other, we get by."

"Then why do you need money?"

"That's none of your concern!" Levi's voice raised, and he stood, striding over to Eren to deliver another swift kick with no warning whatsoever. This time the kicks fell and fell, unceasing and brutal until Eren was doubled over and hacking blood onto the floor, Levi's boot resting firmly on the back of his head, smashing his face into the floor. Darkness distorted the older man's features.

"Don't ask so many questions, Eren."

Eren's blood coursed with viscous fire. He'd never felt so much pain, felt so humiliated and disgraced and just..._angry. _He'd never asked for his life to be what it was, and now he was getting punished for it- again and again- at the hands of this pathetic...lowlife...He hadn't even said anything wrong or offensive, why was he being treated this way? He held his tongue this time, groaning into the wood slats, now slick with his blood, free flowing from his nose and cracked lip. He squeezed tears back out of his eyes. No, he wouldn't cry. He turned fifteen today, he was a man, not a child, and he wouldn't bow so easily to this intimidating stranger. He may be strong, but Eren had had formal training in hand to hand combat, a gift from his father when he'd first mentioned joining the military police...he could be _that _was something this slate-eyed shrimp had never gotten. He spat blood and a chip of a tooth onto the floor.

"Look at you. Making messes of my clean floors." The foot held fast against the back of Eren's head, and unable to protest, he squirmed as Levi's foot slid his face across the floor, smearing his own spit back across his cheek and imbedding a few splinters with it.

"Clean it up."

Eren struggled in futility, making an indignant noise in the back of his throat. When he was finally let up, his neck ached; he throbbed all over. He didn't have the energy to try to sit, he merely flopped over onto his side, panting, his eyes rolling back, half-closed as weight was put on his ribs. He gulped in air like a dying fish. He could have sworn he saw Levi smirk, through his blurry eyes.

"Why...do you do this?" Eren croaked, his voice weak.

"Why does anyone do anything, Eren? Perhaps I just like to hurt you."

It was the most honest thing Eren had ever heard. _I just like to hurt you. _He thought of his schooling, all the structured dissections, pulling apart the insides of small creatures to see just how they worked, their deaths for nothing other than childish curiosity. He thought of the other boys his age and how they would kick Armin cruelly for no other reason than he was smart and weak and they were dumb and big, until Eren would dive between them spitting obsceneties and drive them apart, to go home dirty and be scolded for ruining another uniform. Always there were excuses. Simply in the name of knowledge, or just boys being boys...

_I just like to hurt you..._

But as Levi spoke those words, he looked away. He seemed to stare blankly down for a moment, before glancing back to Eren.

"Tch."


	3. Chapter 3

There was a long silence between the two of them, for what may have been hours or minutes. There was no moon to rise or set by which to gauge the time passing, and there were no ticking clocks on the walls. It was a long enough silence that the ache in Eren's bones became diminished by other aches. He imagined that right about now, at home he would be having tea with Mikasa by the fireplace in the den. She would tutor him on the schoolwork, and he would scratch his head and not retain any of it, and then they would go to bed... His father would be in his study, and not bother them, as per usual. He felt a twinge in his belly that may have been minor internal bleeding, or perhaps it was something else- regret. He regretted running away. He was homesick. He missed his friends. He was all the things a young teenage boy in dire circumstance could be. Levi was scratching something into a leather notebook with a pencil which he paused every once in a while to sharpen with a small thin knife. Eren wondered if the pencil was really dull, or if that was just another thing that this...strange, violent, sharp tongued man liked to keep impeccable. He wondered if Levi had ever read a book. At that, he wondered who had taught him how to read. There weren't schools in the underground, were there? He had a fuzzy mental image of a young Levi, with the same short cut hair and angry eyebrows frowning at a blackboard. It didn't suit the man very well, and Eren had to stifle a giggle as he imagined the young boy saying in a youthfully high pitched voice, _those are some big ass numbers..._

He must be losing his mind. Here he was, being held against his will, and he was entertaining himself with daydreams? Well, he reasoned, there wasn't much else to do. He'd already learned that Levi wasn't the best to make small talk with...he almost wished that girl Isabel was still awake. He bet she'd tell him stories or something. Or maybe that guy in the corner. They hadn't said much about him, but he hadn't woken up all day. He wasn't dead, he knew that much- there was no way Levi would keep around a dead body. Was the man a captive as well? Would he wake up?

He looked back to Levi. He wondered what he was writing about. Was it a sinister plan? A diary? He bit his lip. His big mouth was at it again, and coupled with that irresistible curiosity that always got he and Armin in trouble, he just _wanted _so desperately to ask him...

"You know, it's hard to write when someone's staring at you." Levi said, not looking up. He didn't have to. He could practically feel the heat of Eren's gaze on him.

Eren quickly looked away, his eyes firmly locked on the floorboards at his feet. "S-sorry."

It was quiet for another moment, save for the grind of graphite against paper. Eren stared at his feet, too nervous to say anything else.

"You know, you can go to sleep, at some point." Levi addressed him again. It wasn't so much a notification but more of a hint- _can you go the hell to sleep already? _

"What about you?" Eren couldn't help it; it seemed back-talk was his second nature. "Do you sleep?"

"I'm sitting at a table, Eren. Do you think I'm going to sleep at the table?"

"N-no, I-"

"And if I'm saying you can sleep here, then that means I am obviously not going to be leaving this table any time soon, correct?"

"I...guess so."

"Good, you've started thinking. It's about time."

Eren felt flustered and insulted, both at the same time. If his cheeks hadn't been pink from being dragged across the floor earlier, he was sure they would have been flushed.

"Why are you so...volatile?!" Eren gasped the moment the words left his lips. He had meant them to be a growl under his breath, or a thought in anger, but there they were, hanging in the air like shards. _Shards of my sanity, _Eren thought. Shards that were probably going to come right back and cut what was left of his dignity into even smaller pieces.

The words had gotten Levi's attention, at least. He'd looked up from his writing. Eren sighed.

"That's, uh, that's not what I wanted to say. I just...I was wondering...what you're writing about...?" He ended it as a question, a question to ask many unsaid things. Did I just seal my fate? Am I dead meat? But most of all...Please don't hurt me?

Levi sighed. He wasn't intent on hurting Eren anymore. The boy feared him, and wasn't trying to fight or escape; other than that he didn't really care what the boy did or said. So long as he wasn't making a mess. He was a bit of a brat though...

"I'm drawing." He relinquished.

"Oh!" Eren gasped. Levi...drew? That raised more questions than it gave answers. Did Levi know how to read or write then? Most importantly, what was he drawing?

"May I...see?"

Levi frowned at the paper for a moment, then relaxed a little, running a hand through his short, glossy hair. "Whatever."

He turned the notebook, and what Eren saw was...

"Levi...are those...trees? Is that a forest?" It was a good drawing, the trees very well done, with towering trunks and extending branches...but...the trees were in rows... "Levi, have you ever seen a forest?"

Levi frowned, turning the notebook back around. "I've seen trees, if that's what you mean." He scoffed. "Of course I've seen trees."

"But, have you ever seen a _forest. _A bunch of trees, you know, together."

Levi was silent. Eren couldn't help himself. He was grinning.

"Is something funny, brat?" He spat the last word, but Eren couldn't help himself. He giggled.

"Trees...they don't grow in rows. Together, they grow...however they want, really. There's no order. There's big ones, and little ones, too."

Levi's frown grew deeper. He stared at his drawing for a moment. "Well, they should grow in rows. It would look more orderly."

"Oh! And there's even some that don't die in the winter. They have needles instead of leaves."

That thought seemed to concern Levi a bit, and Eren wondered if he knew he didn't mean _needle _needles but _plant _needles. He opened his mouth to explain but before he could speak, Levi reached up, and Eren realized he was about to rip the page out.

"Wait!" His voice came out louder than he intended, and he became flustered again. "Er, that is, I mean, don't tear it out. You want to see a forest, don't you? Keep it, then when you see one you'll be...even more impressed."

Levi couldn't tell quite what he intended by that, but it almost seemed like an insult to his drawing. Almost. He was more amused by the way Eren had phrased it though..._when. _Not "if" but "when" he were to see a forest.

"You think I'll ever see an actual forest, Eren?" He asked, and when he did so Eren was surprised to hear something...wistful under his words. A longing. For _someday, _for freedom. Eren smiled. So Levi did have a heart. He wasn't nearly so harsh when he wasn't in front of that girl...Isabel, her name was.

"Sure you will. When you get the money from my ransom, maybe you'll have money to do anything you want." Eren smiled. That was an..odd thought. Would he be alive then? Probably not. Would Levi really kill him? He hoped not, but...he thought of all the times he had run away from home, to nowhere in particular. People do crazy things for freedom. But was kidnapping him really such a crazy thing? If he were in Levi's shoes, would he not do the same thing, anything to get out of his cage? He couldn't say no...but he couldn't quite say yes either.

"I doubt that," Levi replied. "A snivelly little kid like you can't be worth _that _much."

"Hey! I'm not a kid! I'm fifteen!"

Eren's mind reeled with questions again. How old was Levi? He didn't look much older than him. But his eyes said otherwise. How old could somebody be and never see more than one tree together?

Levi smirked, and Eren realized...this wasn't the same cruel smirk as earlier. There was humor behind the curl of his lips. He was...messing with him. Eren's lips parted in wonder. He regarded the other man for a second, then looked away again, blushing. He was being toyed with, right? Toyed with, and then killed. Fantastic. What a great end to what had seemed to be such a promising life he was going to lead.

Eren bit his lips again and let that thought run through his mind again. The brief giddiness he had felt waned, and a sourness pooled in his belly. Even if he and Levi talked, what was the point? He was going to die.

Levi watched Eren as he turned away. His expression went from alighted to conflicted in mere seconds...was it something he'd said? Did Eren think his parents wouldn't pay the ransom?

That would be bad, for everyone involved, but for one person in particular.

Levi turned the page in his notebook, but this time, he didn't draw. He wrote a letter. When he looked up, Eren was asleep. That was good. Bruises like those didn't heal while staying up talking about silly things like trees. In spite of himself, Levi found himself sighing though. It seemed he'd be alone for another sleepless night as decisions and consequences ran through his head until the morning came. It was a shame, he decided finally, as the sound of Eren's snores filtered through the air. He wasn't such bad company after all...for a brat.

And besides, Levi mused as a particularly loud snore rang out, he was quieter when he was awake.

* * *

><p><em>Hello! I've decided to put the author note at the bottom instead of the top from now on. I must say, I'm sorry for how long it took to get this chapter out! And for how short it is! I actually had a bit of a paranormal experience working on the last chapter and it spooked me off for a bit. Real or imagined? Who knows. It was three in the morning then...haha. But don't worry, I'm back now!<br>_

_Anyway, now that the plot has started going a little, what do you think? Was Levi OOC? I reread "No Regrets" So many times trying to get his "underground Levi" character down but...it would be hard to make this a romance if he doesn't break free his prickly exterior just a little. ^^ Reviews are always appreciated! If you'd like to see longer chapters, let me know! _


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